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Informist, Monday, Sept. 28, 2026

 

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--SC takes suo motu cognisance of recent rape cases in Delhi-NCR 
--SC: Incidents in Delhi-NCR highlight failure of law enforcement agencies 
--SC: Public spaces like parks can't be permitted to become high-risk zones 
--SC: Expressing solidarity not enough, necessary to fix accountability 
--SC: One cannot help but draw painful parallels to Nirbhaya incident 
--CONTEXT: SC on recent rape cases in public park, bus in Delhi-NCR 

 

NEW DELHI – The Supreme Court Monday took suo motu cognisance of recent rape cases of two girls in a public park and a moving bus in the National Capital Region, observing that one cannot help but draw painful parallels to the Nirbhaya incident of 2012 that involved the brutal assault of a 23-year-old physiotherapy student sparking historic nationwide protests and reforms to anti-rape laws. These incidents starkly highlight a failure of law enforcement, said a bench of Justice J.B. Pardiwala and Justice K. Vinod Chandran.  

 

Public spaces, including parks and buses, cannot be permitted to become zones of high risk due to lack of illumination, poor surveillance, and other administrative facilities, the apex court said. Expressing solidarity is not enough, the court said, adding that it is necessary to fix accountability. The top court directed its registry to register a suo-motu case on the issue.

 

A 16-year-old girl was allegedly gang-raped inside a sleeper bus after boarding it at Pari Chowk in Greater Noida on Aug. 4, 2026. The police had said the driver and conductor allegedly assaulted her during the journey and later abandoned her near Kashmere Gate in Delhi. Thereafter, both men were arrested.

 

The case has raised questions about the bus's traffic record, its closed-circuit television network system, staff verification, and the enforcement of existing passenger-safety rules under scrutiny. According to reports, the bus had received eight challans in Uttar Pradesh in July, with fines totalling INR 54,000. One of the challans, issued in Hamirpur, was for allegedly operating without a valid permit and carried an INR 23,000 penalty. Most of the other challans were reportedly related to speeding, as per media reports.

 

Last week, a 17-year-old girl, who was celebrating her birthday with a male friend in a park in Delhi, was raped by three men. The men approached them falsely posing as police officers using intimidation and police lingo and snatched their phones. Thereafter, the girl was dragged to an isolated spot in the bushes at knifepoint and gunpoint and raped. The police have arrested three people in the case.

 

The incident sparked severe panic and protests among local student bodies, including students from Delhi University's Lady Shri Ram College located near the area, leading to temporary class suspensions and shifting of classes online. Media reports and police inspections revealed stark safety gaps inside the 142-acre Delhi Development Authority park, including non-functional high-mast and lamp posts, missing or broken closed circuit television networks and dark isolated stretches.  End 

 

Reported by Surya Tripathi 

Edited by Shubhayan Bhattacharya

 

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